Tales of the Dai Li
by Dark Puck
Summary: A series of one-shots focusing on the Dai Li set before, during, and after Avatar: The Last Airbender. OC-Centric with some canon cameos. Not in chronological order. Rating may change. Eleventh chapter, "Avatar," is up.
1. New Recruit (Hyun Su, Alak)

It was an absolutely miserable night.

Hyun Su stood beneath a cloth awning, taking shelter from the freezing rain pouring down. It wasn't winter, not yet, but it seemed the weather spirits were in a rush to bring the next season.

He took a drag on his cigarette and then exhaled; while he didn't smoke often, the night was bitter enough that indulging brought some small comfort.

At least he could go home now.

Movement caught his eye, and he looked up to see a dark figure approaching. He shifted slightly, balancing his weight better for a sudden strike should one be necessary.

The figure, when it drew closer, turned out to be a boy not much younger than their sole trainee. He had the gawky look of one not yet grown into his limbs, and, with his unusually short hair plastered to his skull by the rain, at the moment resembled nothing so much as a soaked, miserable hedgepuppy.

He was also vaguely familiar, now that Hyun Su thought about it. The red-rimmed eyes were new, though.

"Excuse me," the boy said quietly. Hyun Su had to strain to hear him through the rain patter. "I... where would I go to accept a Dai Li offer?"

_Now_ Hyun Su remembered the face.

It'd been daylight the last time he'd seen the boy. He'd been wary then; nowhere near as unhappy as he looked now. He took another drag on his cigarette, considering, then stubbed it out. "Come with me," he said in as gentle a tone as he could manage. The boy needed dry, warm clothes - and food, if he was any judge.

After a moment's hesitation, the boy nodded. "Okay."

"What's your name?" Hyun Su asked as he led the boy towards his apartment.

"Alak," was the soft reply. "I'm called Alak."

Fortunately, it wasn't all that far to Hyun Su's place. "Here," he said once they were inside, digging through a chest of drawers, "put these on. They'll be a little big, but they're dry." He tossed a tunic and pants to the kid, and piled a blanket and a towel on top of the clothing. "You can change in there," he added, nodding to his bedroom. "I'll get some dinner started."

Alak bit his lower lip, looking like he wanted to cry again. But he nodded and vanished to change.

Hyun Su poked up the fire, then stepped over to his kitchen and peered in his icebox to see what he had for dinner. He'd make a vegetable bàn miàn, he decided. Alak could do with some warmth. And a task to distract him.

The bedroom door opened, and he said without turning, "Hang your clothes up over there, by the fire, then come over here when you're done."

He barely heard the whispered thanks.

How long had Alak been out in the wet before deciding to accept the Dai Li's offer?

When Alak's footsteps approached, he sat the boy down at the table, with a cutting board, knife, and the vegetables Hyun Su preferred. "You know how to dice food?" he asked.

When the boy nodded, Hyun Su smiled. "Then get started."

Alak inclined his head and got to work while Hyun Su prepared everything else. While the food cooked, Hyun Su also made tea. He gave Alak the first cup, ignoring the boy's attempt at courtesy. "You need the warmth."

Alak flushed, but refused to drink any until Hyun Su filled his own cup.

Merchants.

"So," Hyun Su said, once Alak had a full cup of tea in him and looked generally less bedraggled. "Why are you accepting the Dai Li's offer?"

For a long moment, Alak was silent. Finally, he admitted, "Because I have nowhere else to go. My grandfather, he-" His voice broke, and he rubbed his arm quickly over his eyes.

Hyun Su reached across the table to grip the boy's shoulder reassuringly. Alak took a deep breath, then went on, "He didn't like that I was... someone the Dai Li would deem a worthy candidate. He kicked me out of the house and said he would have me disowned." That explained the shorn hair, then.

Alak closed his eyes. "I thought he was just angry, that he'd change his mind after a day or two. Especially because he wouldn't let mother give me anything to smooth my way - not money, or extra clothing, or even food. He said if the Dai Li wanted me, they could provide for my upkeep."

Hyun Su's eyes narrowed. "You were going to accept?"

Alak shook his head. "No, I..." He bit his bottom lip. "I was going to refuse. I was _happy_. Aunt Liqiu was teaching Biyu and me a different way of weaving silk, and..." His voice trailed off, and his hands curled into fists. "Grandfather didn't care."

"Alak," Hyun Su said, as gently as he could. "Do you _want_ to be Dai Li?"

The look in his eyes was answer enough, but instead of the negative he expected, Alak said, "I have to."

Hyun Su allowed his surprise to show on his face, and as expected, Alak elaborated. "I _can't_ do anything else. If I try to go to other cloth-makers or tailors, grandfather will find out. I... I could beg, or steal, but I want to do those even less than I want..."

"To be Dai Li," Hyun Su finished. And the other alternatives were starving or freezing to death: winter was approaching.

Alak flushed and mumbled something.

Hyun Su sighed. "Well, it's too late to do anything now. It's after hours."

The boy immediately looked nervous. "Then what should I do?"

"You'll stay the night with me," Hyun Su said promptly. "I've some other blankets and a spare pillow you can use. In the morning, we'll see what options Hyo-sir offers." He smiled kindly at Alak. "It may well be you'd fit better in the Ministry of Culture than in the Dai Li."

Startled, Alak looked into his eyes for the first time that night. "Really?"

"Really," Hyun Su said, excusing himself to check on dinner and to give the boy a few minutes to process that information. "It's your choice."

Alak fell silent, and remained pensive through dinner. He helped Hyun Su clean up afterwards, and then to set up another sleeping area beside the futon.

It wasn't until Hyun Su was drifting off to sleep that Alak spoke again. "What's your name?"

"Hyun Su."

"Good night, Hyun Su. And... thank you."

Hyun Su smiled in the darkness. "You're welcome."

* * *

The third hour after dawn found Hyun Su and young Alak just outside Commander Hyo's office. The boy was nervous, visibly so, though he sat still as a statue. Hyun Su stood impassively next to him, stone-gloved hands tucked into his sleeves.

It was fortunate that Hyo was Commander now. From what he'd heard of the previous commander, the choice he'd given Alak, of going into the Ministry of Culture instead of the Dai Li, would have been untenable.

The door to the office opened, and Hyo's seven-year-old daughter blinked in surprise. "Hyun Su!" she exclaimed, a broad smile covering her face.

Hyun Su smiled back. "Hello, Mi-Cha. We're here to see Hyo-sir."

She nodded and pushed the door all the way open for them. "He's at his desk."

"Thank you," he said gravely, sweeping her a courtly bow that earned him a delighted giggle.

"Who is that?" she asked, peering past him to Alak. "Is he like Lanh?"

"No," Hyun Su said. He wasn't sure the Dai Li could handle another boy like Lanh. He gestured for Alak to follow, then entered the office.

The Commander of the Dai Li looked like he was in a good mood, despite the pile of papers on either side of his desk. A corner of his office had been barricaded off with what looked like cushions; likely Mi-Cha's work. Sunlight glinted off an emerald that had fallen outside the confines of the small fort.

"Hyun Su," Hyo-sir greeted him. "What brings you by?"

Hyun Su drew Alak forward. "Alak does, sir."

It was the work of only a few minutes to get Alak to explain his story, during which Hyo-sir grew distinctly unhappy. Hyun Su noticed a frowning Mi-Cha disappear briefly into the cushion fort, then return to push a small stone into Alak's hand.

When Alak finished speaking, Hyo steepled his fingers. "It is... unfortunate that your grandfather reacted the way he did." To the boy's obvious relief, however, he said no more on that subject.

"I thought he might be suitable for the Ministry of Culture," Hyun Su said. "So he isn't forced to join the Dai Li," he didn't add.

Hyo-sir heard it anyway. "I see. I'll have a word with the Minister, if that is Alak's decision."

"No."

Both men blinked and looked over at the boy. "Come again?" Hyun Su asked.

Alak looked up, his green eyes burning. "I don't want to join the Ministry of Culture, sir."

Hyo and Hyun Su exchanged looks. "I thought you didn't want to be Dai Li," Hyun Su said, confused.

"I... didn't," Alak said. "But I thought about it, and... I've changed my mind."

"Why?" asked Hyo-sir gently.

Unaccountably, Alak flushed. "I just..." he trailed off, trying to marshall his thoughts. He glanced at Hyun Su, then looked down. "Thought about it a little more."

Hyo-sir nodded. "Very well. Mi-Cha, take Alak outside. I'd like a word with Hyun Su."

Mi-Cha beamed up at Alak and led him out by the hand, chattering away at him about something her doll had done yesterday.

When the door closed behind them, Hyo-sir looked at him. "I don't think he'd do well rooming with Lanh," he said. "At least, not at first."

"Because he's a merchant, or...?"

"Because Lanh will drive him to madness within a day," Hyo-sir clarified. "We're working on the kleptomania, but nothing seems to break the habit."

"I could take him," Hyun Su offered. "Alak, I mean."

Hyo-sir smiled. "I'd hoped you would," he admitted. "He seems to trust you, somewhat."

Hyun Su flushed. "I just let him stay the night, that's all."

"And showed him there's good in the Dai Li," Hyo said. "You did a good job, Hyun Su. If you want to mentor the boy..."

"I do," Hyun Su said. "He's a good kid." He didn't want Bae or the other mindbenders to take an interest, either.

"Very well," Hyo-sir agreed. "He's your responsibility. I'll let Joo Dee know."

Hyun Su blinked. "Joo Dee?"

The Commander smiled. "Of course. Alak won't be earning pay as of yet, and it wouldn't be fair to ask you to support the boy on your salary as it stands. Lanh's mentors draw from the same fund when they have him."

"Oh. Uh. Thank you, sir," he said. How long had they had that fund? Probably for some time, Hyun Su realised. Alak and Lanh weren't the only down-on-their-luck boys the Dai Li had recruited.

Hyo-sir's smile grew wider. "Take your boy to be fitted for robes. And other clothes. Give him a day or so to get used to the idea of joining the Dai Li - and time to make his final decision."

"Yes, sir," Hyun Su said, bowing. He was very glad Hyo-sir was Commander now.

* * *

**_Author's Notes_**

_Welcome to "Tales of the Dai Li!" This is a series of one-shots (or possibly more) focusing on the Dai Li and the people they interact with. As such, it will be very OC-heavy. Much like my other one-shot series, Mob Job, these stories will not be in chronological order. I'll do my best to say where they are relevant to canon events at the end of each story._

_"New Recruit" takes place approximately two months before Aang is freed from the iceberg._

_Alak, Hyo, and Mi-Cha are my OCs; Hyun Su belongs to Rebecca Hb. and is used with her permission._


	2. Garden (Alak)

Alak blinked a few times as he stepped onto the roof of his apartment complex. The sun seemed far too bright when he hadn't seen it at all for the last week. Liu had finally given him permission to go home last night, though he'd had to bring Chatri and Lanh with him.

His fellow trainees were still asleep, however: Chatri in Hyun Su's bed and Lanh in a tangle of blankets on the floor. The early morning light was Alak's alone.

Yawning, he made his way to the garden Hyun Su kept.

In the madness surrounding the Fall, Alak actually hadn't seen his roommate and mentor. Still, he knew Hyun Su well enough to want to make sure the garden was taken care of. If nothing else, the older man would have one less thing to worry about when he returned from the Fire Nation.

He checked each of the bean poles to make sure they were doing all right, then watered them. Next were the daikon and the bamboo shoots, then the melons. After that came the few flowers Hyun Su grew to attract bees - mountain mint, salvias, and-

Where had those roses come from?

"Chatri," he muttered, remembering who still slept downstairs. When had he come up here with those? He didn't remember the other trainee carrying them last night.

Shaking his head, he moved on to the castor beans, corander, pennyroyal and rue. He'd probably have to warn Lanh off the castor beans. Chatri too. Especially Chatri, really; it wouldn't surprise him if Lanh already knew castor was poisonous.

When he'd finished, he laid down to soak up a little sun, and wondered if Hyun Su would mind him adding toads to the garden. Probably the superintendent would. But since Chatri had added roses... maybe some tomatoes and basil, to repel aphids? He wished Hyun Su was here to ask. Well, maybe he could nip down to the Forum and ask some of the plant-sellers there.

Later. After work.

He sat up again and headed back inside to wake his fellow trainees. It was going to be a long day.

* * *

_**Author's Notes**_

_Short and sweet. _

_This takes place a little over a week after Azula takes over Ba Sing Se._

_For the curious: Lanh is seventeen, while Alak and Chatri are both sixteen. _


	3. Meetings (Hyo)

一

"We're being watched," Hyo softly remarked.

The five trainees were sprawled under a tree in the Agrarian Zone, theoretically studying some earthbending scrolls. In practise... well, it was a warm spring day. Rithisak, Kyung, and Dato had all shed their outer robes and were dicing; gold-eyed Hu was curled up asleep with his head on Hyo's thigh. Hyo himself had been reading some novel or another, until the sensation of being watched had disrupted him.

At his words, however, Rithisak looked up and around at the tall robed figure. His eyes flew wide. "The Cultural Minister!" he breathed. The three Ba Sing Se boys practically flew upright to bow politely. Hyo was slower to rise - he didn't want to unceremoniously dump poor Hu on his head.

The minister looked them all over, but his gaze lingered the longest on Hyo. At last he said, "It's a pleasure to meet the future of the Dai Li." His voice was mild, his expression calm, but Hyo felt a sudden surge of fear/hostility/_longing_. "What skills do you bring us?" the minister asked.

Rithisak spoke up before Dato could. "I'm a student of history and strategy, minister," he said. "Kyung is an actor, Dato is skilled at blending in, Hu is silver-tongued, and Hyo-" He hesitated. Dai Li were usually recruited for subtle skills, after all.

The silence stretched long enough that the minister raised an eyebrow.

"I was recruited for my combat ability," Hyo said at last, meeting jade eyes.

To his surprise, the minister smiled. "I see," he said, and Hyo _knew_ the man was well aware of who they all were and why they had been recruited.

* * *

二

"Agent Hyo."

Hyo looked up from his paper. "Minister," he said, acknowledging the older man's presence with a careful bow. Carefully he laid his brush aside. "How can I help you?"

Long Feng didn't reply immediately; his gaze had fallen on Hyo's paper. The young man resisted the urge to cover his work. Finally, the Cultural Minister said, "We have books on Han-Guk culture."

Only the strictest control over his face kept Hyo from sneering. "I've read them, Minister," he said calmly. "The writing is biased."

Long Feng raised an eyebrow at this statement. "The books were written by professors of Ba Sing Se University, Agent Hyo."

"Exactly, Minister."

A smile tugged at the corner of Long Feng's mouth. "I see your point. Take your paper to Captain Thanh when you complete your first draft. Now, walk with me."

Hyo rose from his seat, grabbing his robe from where he'd laid it aside. As he put it back on, he thought he saw a flash of amusement in the Minister's face.

They walked in silence for several minutes, Hyo two paces behind the Cultual Minister.

At last, Long Feng said, "Commander Chet tells me you have trouble retaining partners."

An earthquake threatened to spill out of Hyo. He clenched his hands into fists, picturing moonlight falling on Lake Laogai.

Nine years.

Nine years since the Dai Li Commander had assigned Hyo to the Lower Ring and Hu to the Agrarian Zone, preventing them from partnering. Nine _slagging_ years of working alone or with temporary partners.

The last had been the worst - Renshu, a noble of the Upper Ring, had considered Hyo a barbaric foreigner, an uncultured brute. The bastard had even tried to goad Hyo into fights with soldiers for his own amusement.

When Hyo finally lost his temper and screamed at Renshu, Liu had overheard. The next day, Renshu had been reassigned.

That had been two weeks ago.

"I work better alone, Minister," he said softly. The floor trembled faintly. If only Hu hadn't vanished a year into his assignment...

"I see," said Long Feng.

A week later, Hyo was transferred to Captain Thanh.

* * *

三

Hyo smile tenderly at his newborn daughter as he held her in his arms. He still couldn't believe his luck - not only did he have a beautiful, loving wife, he now had a healthy child. He doubted his life could get any better.

"Agent Hyo."

Hyo turned and offered Minister Long Feng an abbreviated bow. He didn't usually use the abbreviated forms, but he didn't usually have a newborn in his arms, either. "Minister," Hyo greeted him.

"I never see you on Dai Li business," he observed.

"You only see me when I'm off-duty, sir," Hyo countered.

Long Feng smiled faintly, and Hyo wondered if he was being teased. "True," the Minister admitted, then changed the subject. "Captain Thanh credits you with recruiting a promising trainee."

"He used earthbending in an unusual way," Hyo said. "And he managed to unite two lower ring gangs and lead them in tracking down a serial killer." Kidlat had also nearly killed the murderer with his bare hands. "He is intelligent, persuasive, and very angry."

"Do you think the Dai Li will calm his anger?" Long Feng asked.

"I think the Dai Li will temper it," Hyo replied carefully. "And allow him a constructive outlet that won't lead to inciting riots."

Long Feng nodded. "Where would _you_ place him?"

Hyo frowned. Why was Long Feng asking him? As Commander, Chet was the one who decided where the trainees went. Mulling the question over, he finally said, "With Captain Liu. Kidlat ran with taggers - the young people who turn grafitti into an art form. He could learn additional styles of art from Liu. It would keep him in the Lower Ring, a place he cares about."

"Commander Chet thinks he would be better served in the Agrarian Zone," Long Feng said.

Hyo shifted carefully, breaking his root under the guise of making sure his daughter still slept. "Hu was sent to the Agrarian Zone," was his soft reply.

"As was Dato," Long Feng countered, naming the current Captain of that region.

"Dato is of Ba Sing Se."

Silence stretched, and then Long Feng changed the subject again. "What did you name her?"

"Mi-Cha," Hyo answered. "Beautiful daughter." He hesitated a moment. "Would you like to hold her?"

The Minister looked as stunned as Hyo felt. "I- all right."

Cradling Mi-Cha to his chest with one arm, Hyo arranged Long Feng's arms properly, then carefully laid his daughter in them.

Long Feng gazed at the infant for a moment, then said, "She seems... healthy."

As if aware that she was being discussed, Mi-Cha yawned and opened her pale green eyes. She looked briefly startled to see a face that wasn't her father or mother, but then she giggled and reached up for Long Feng.

Hyo's eyes slid to the minister, and for a moment thought he saw a ghost of a smile.

* * *

四

"The stars are bright."

"That they are."

* * *

_ **Author's**** Notes: **This was originally written as a Christmas gift for Rebecca Hb._

_The settings are as follows:_

_First Meeting - 20 years before Aang escapes the iceberg  
Second Meeting - 10 years before Aang escapes the iceberg  
Third Meeting - 8 years before Aang escapes the iceberg  
Fourth Meeting - 5 years before Aang escapes the iceberg and a reference to "The Price of Command"  
_

_Kyung is Rebecca Hb.'s; Hyo, Rithisak, Hu, and Dato are all mine; Long Feng belongs to Mike and Bryan  
_


	4. Of Course (Hyo)

His hair would be completely white by the time Long Feng returned, Inspector-General Hyo was certain.

Between the new responsibilities that came with his recent 'promotion', the new direction the Dai Li were taking, taking some of Long Feng's responsibilities on top of his own, and various politicians badgering him about the sill-absent Earth King, Hyo was extremely stressed.

When Agent Lanh poked his head into his office, Hyo pierced him with a glare. "Keep your hands in sight. I am in no mood for your shenanigans."

Lanh gave him a wounded look, which he ignored. "Um. The Avatar is in the city. With some of his friends," the boy reported. "Sir."

Hyo stared at him. "Please tell me you're joking."

The young agent shook his head, and Hyo suppressed a groan. "Of course they are. Where are they now?"

"Um. Outside. They, uh. They want to talk to someone in charge. They... don't look pleased, sir."

Hyo could feel a headache coming on. "Given the majority of their encounters with the Dai Li..." He looked at the candle-clock and sighed. Of course they'd pick _now_, when he'd planned to see his daughter for the first time in three days, to turn up.

"All right. I'll deal with this."

Damn it.

"Tell Mi-Cha I'm going to be late," he ordered the boy. Lanh bowed and vanished, and Hyo put his head in his hands. "I'm getting too old for this."

Lanh reappeared. "You're barely forty, Hyo-sir."

"**Out!**"

The impudent scut grinned and withdrew.

With a final sigh, Hyo rose from his desk and went to deal with the Avatar.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:**__ Just a short little bit because I like Hyo-sir._

_This takes place over a year after the series finale and is probably concurrent with Rebecca Hb's - no, wait, that story isn't finished yet. Sorry._


	5. Pickpocket (Lanh)

This was such a bad idea.

Still, Dao'd bet him a tidy sum that he couldn't successfully pickpocket a Dai Li agent, and Lanh knew he could. The money off _this_ would feed him for three days, or maybe even buy him a new shirt.

The agent he was currently stalking turned down a side street, and Lanh wandered past it. He knew the rumours of what happened to those who angered the Dai Li.

After about a half-hour, during which Lanh snagged three wallets and a ring, the agent reappeared. Lanh sauntered into the market after him, parking himself at a bookseller three stalls down from where the agent was browsing. He thumbed through one of the books as though the squiggles there held some meaning to him.

He tapped one bare foot against the ground as he waited for the right moment— now!

The Dai Li passed him, and Lanh twisted his foot, shaking the stalls around them. As he'd anticipated, the Dai Li reached out with his earthbending to still the quake. So occupied, he failed to notice Lanh's quick removal of his wallet and subsequent escape.

* * *

Lanh tugged his new shirt straight on his lanky frame, unable to stop grinning. The man he'd bought it from was more than happy to trade it for a full wallet.

All right, so Lanh had vastly overpaid, but he'd seen the man's gold-eyed daughter hiding in his shadow. Anyone with Fire-eyes needed all the help they could get.

Lanh used his earthbending to propel himself over the low wall between him and the ruin that was his home. The old wooden building should have been torn down three or four years ago, but had slipped through the cracks of bureaucracy. He'd long since strengthened the rotten foundations with stone, so he didn't worry about the house caving in on him.

He stretched as high as he could, fingertips just barely brushing the door frame, then walked in. He stashed rest of his take in the hole underneath the remains of a dresser, then rolled to his feet. If memory served, he still had some bread from last night.

Something flew just past his head and slammed hard against the wall. Startled, Lanh turned to see a pile of rock now lying on the floor.

Not a rock pile, a rock _glove_—

He dashed across the house towards one of the windows. He'd escaped through it before—

—but he'd been thirteen then, and much smaller. He crashed through the rotten wood and lay on the ground, stunned. Before he could gather himself enough to scramble to his feet, earth crept around his wrists, locking him to the ground.

The Dai Li agent dropped off the roof of the building, landing almost on top of Lanh. He retrieved a pair of metal shackles before turning brown eyes on the pickpocket. "Regs say I have to ask if you're going to make this difficult," he said, annoyed. "So."

Lanh stared up at him and considered his options. If he fought the Dai Li, he'd be hurt, killed, or worse. He _might_ escape, but the odds of _that_ happening approached zero. He swallowed, but lay still.

"Good," said the agent. He yanked Lanh free of the ground and bound his hands together with those weird rock-gloves, then hoisted the pickpocket over his shoulder. Lanh barely had time to wonder what would happen before the Dai Li leapt back to the roofs.

* * *

Growing up in Ba Sing Se, Lanh had learned to fear the Dai Li. He'd heard the rumours, seen the outspoken taken away and returned different men. Happier — always happier — but different.

To be arrested by the Dai Li was to change — or worse, vanish.

So Lanh was surprised to be led, not to a prison cell, but to an office. Inside was a grey-haired man and a little girl, their heads bent over a slate covered in arcane symbols. He stared for a moment before realising that the child was not, in fact, Dai Li: he'd mistaken her carefully tailored dress for a Dai Li's uniform.

"Hello, Xiang," said the man softly, drawing Lanh's attention from the girl. Even seated he was tall, and powerfully built. He looked down at the girl beside him. "Mi-Cha," he said, "please take your work to Joo Dee. She will complete your lesson."

The child pouted prettily, but bowed in acknowledgement before gathering the slate, an open book, and other such things. She gave Lanh a curious glance as she passed him, paused to bow respectfully to the Dai Li behind him, then flitted out the door.

Now the man behind the desk looked at _him_, and Lanh took a step back, thudding into his captor — Xiang. "Who is this?" the man asked mildly.

"Pickpocket," Xiang said, giving Lanh a little shove forward.

One grey eyebrow rose. "Thieves do not warrant my attention, Captain," he said.

"He got Duyi's wallet, Commander," was the answer. "Without Duyi noticing."

Interest suddenly sparked in the man's eyes, but Lanh didn't notice. He was trying not to faint. Not only a Dai Li captain, but the _Commander_? Only one man in Ba Sing Se outranked him in the hierarchy of the Dai Li: the King's regent.

Why the hell had he taken that stupid bet?

"What's your name, boy?" the Commander asked.

"I-it's Lanh," he managed to get out. He gulped. "Sir."

"Lanh," the Commander repeated, then smiled. "You're a lucky young man, you know."

Lanh stared at him. What, exactly, was supposed to be lucky about this?

"Lucky that it wasn't a soldier or peacekeeper who caught you," the Commander clarified. "They wouldn't give you the choice I will."

"Uh?"

"I'm fairly certain you'd prefer to avoid jail if at all possible," he said. "That can be done — on one condition."

"I'm no house-thief," Lanh pointed out quickly. If he was, he'd have shoes. "Too risky."

Both men laughed. "You pickpocketed a Dai Li," Xiang pointed out.

Lanh flushed.

"I don't want you to steal for me," the Commander said.

He ignored Lanh's muttered, _"Yet_."

"Look at me," he ordered, and Lanh obeyed. Meeting eyes the colour of steel, Lanh wondered suddenly if this was how people were changed. (Why were the Commander's eyes so kind?)

"I don't want you to steal for me," he repeated. "I want you to join the Dai Li."

Lanh _stared_.

"You broke him, Hyo."

"Hush," ordered the Commander, still holding Lanh's eyes. "That is my deal, Lanh. Join the Dai Li, and I won't have Captain Xiang turn you over to the peacekeepers."

"Jail gets me food and a roof over my head," Lanh said slowly. "What does the Dai Li get me?"

"Better food, better roof, upkeep — and, when you're a full agent, pay," the Commander answered.

It sounded like a great deal to Lanh. But these were _Dai Li_. How could he be sure this wasn't some kind of trick?

…what would be the point in tricking him?

"Sounds good," Lanh said. "I'm in."

The Commander nodded, then looked past Lanh at Xiang. "You found him," he said. "Do you want to choose his mentor?"

"Nope. He's your problem," said Xiang, then walked out.

The Commander didn't look too surprised. "It's for the better, I think." He rose from behind the desk. "Come on, boy — let's get you cleaned up."

Lanh eyed him. "Cleaned up? Ain't no place'll take me."

Hyo just smiled.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:**_ _This story takes place roughly a year before Aang's arrival in Ba Sing Se. This makes Lanh the oldest of the trainees, both in years and in time spent in training._

_Lanh, Hyo, and Mi-Cha are all mine; Xiang and Duyi belong to Rebecca Hb. and are used with her permission and input._


	6. Braid (Hyo, Long Feng, the Gaang)

Katara blinked when she emerged from her tent.

By now she'd grown used to the Dai Li's Inspector-General working out shirtless every morning, and could certainly appreciate it. For all he was her father's age, Hyo kept himself in very good shape.

Long Feng brushing Hyo's hair was new, however.

The scene was oddly domestic, and brought to mind one or five of the doujinshi she owned. The fact that Hyo was still shirtless wasn't helping. Long Feng, of course, was fully clothed, but it was easy to mentally remove his shirt and... oh my.

She flushed.

"Good morning, Katara," said Hyo without turning his head.

Long Feng said nothing, continuing to run the brush through his subordinate's hair.

"Good morning," she replied. Looking closer at the pair, she realised that Hyo's shoulders were tense, the muscles in his back taut. Was he in pain?

She moved to the campfire, poking it back up so she could get breakfast ready. She kept one eye on the two men as she did, but neither took much more notice of her.

The scent of cooking food roused the others, and one by one they joined her at the fire. "What happened to your arm?" Sokka asked suddenly, eyeing Hyo.

At first the man didn't answer, and Katara wondered if he would ignore the question. But as Long Feng divided Hyo's hair into sections, the Inspector-General said, "I fought a master firebender during the last days of the Siege."

"The Dai Li fought during the Siege?" Toph asked sceptically.

"No," Long Feng answered.

"Not intentionally," clarified Hyo.

"You _accidentally_ fought a master firebender?" Sokka's tone was as disbelieving as Katara felt.

"I accidentally stumbled on a squad of soldiers that contained a master, yes," Hyo said. "Let me start at the beginning." Katara dished up breakfast as he continued, "A few of the other off-duty Dai Li and I were... concerned following General Iroh's breaching of the Great Outer Wall. We elected to head out there and see if we could discover any weaknesses in his forces."

He paused for a moment, but nobody had comments, so he went on. "I don't know about the others - we split up soon after entering the Agrarian Zone - but I had the misfortune to run into one of General Iroh's patrols."

"But you're an earthbender," Aang protested.

"Not everyone's as good at earth-sight as me, Twinkle-toes," Toph informed him.

"Precisely," Hyo agreed. "And it wasn't a skill I had been trained in." He sighed, and rubbed his scarred left arm. "The ensuing fight was... ugly, to say the least. I was sorely outnumbered. Fortunately, they were as startled to see me as I was to see them, and I was able to get in the first attack."

Long Feng tied off Hyo's braid, then accepted a bowl of food from Katara. He passed it to Hyo, who paused in his tale to take a sip from it. She frowned on seeing that; the Dai Li hadn't moved his left arm at all this morning.

"My memory of the fight is somewhat unclear," Hyo admitted after a second sip of breakfast. "Between the darkness, the fire, and the confusion, it was difficult to discern what was happening at the time, let alone after I regained consciousness."

"You were knocked out?" Sokka asked, and a mirthless smile crossed Hyo's face.

"I passed out," he corrected the younger man. "The firebender's final blow was simultaneous with my own. These scars are the souvenir of that." He shrugged his right shoulder. "The arm troubles me from time to time, but it's a small price to pay for surviving that encounter."

"How did you make it out?" Katara asked, horrified. To be unconscious in the middle of contested territory, with firebenders all around? He might have been discovered and killed!

"I found him," Long Feng put in calmly.

Silence greeted this statement. Katara considered what she knew of Long Feng, and eventually decided that it did make a strange sort of sense that he would go after his second-in-command.

(It made even more sense if she considered the _Jade_ series. She couldn't help but wonder if the Shadowgirls knew about this.)

"You found him," Sokka said after a moment.

"Yes," Long Feng said in a tone that brooked no further discussion of the matter.

Sokka ignored that. "Why?"

The Cultural Minister raised an eyebrow at him and said nothing; it was Hyo who finally answered. "Surely loyalty to one's subordinates isn't a new concept to you."

"...well, no, but..." Sokka trailed off in the face of the looks both Long Feng and Hyo turned on him.

"But?" Hyo asked mildly.

Sokka mumbled something, and Katara said brightly, "Who wants seconds?"

"Please," Hyo answered, offering his bowl to her with a slight smile. Thank goodness neither man seemed inclined to press Sokka further on his thoughtless comment. Katara refilled his bowl and returned it, then supplied the others. Once that was done, she moved to sit next to him.

He gave her a questioning look, and she said quietly, "Your arm hurts now, doesn't it?"

"It isn't too bad," he said, but this close, she could see the tightness around his eyes.

"I think I can help," Katara said, and laid a hand on her waterskin. "That is... with your permission?"

"All right," Hyo said after a moment.

She nodded and drew the water from its container. She warmed it, then moved it to coat his left arm from shoulders to finger. She could feel Long Feng's gaze on her, but she ignored him. After a few minutes, the tension in Hyo's shoulders eased, and the tightness vanished from his face.

To her disappointment, she couldn't heal his arm with ordinary water - the scarring was simply too old. Still, she _had_ helped, and as she returned her bending water to its container, she glanced up and noted the smallest of smiles on Long Feng's face.

* * *

_**Author's Notes**__: This takes place about seven years after Ozai's defeat. No, I'm not telling you why Hyo and Long Feng are travelling with the Gaang. _Sore wa himitsu desu_. ^_^ Also the reasons are Rebecca Hb.'s. Yes, she does feature often in things I write. This is because she is awesome, so go read her stuff._

_Hyo belongs to me; _AtLA_, the Gaang, and Long Feng are all the intellectual property of Bryke and I promise to put them back when I'm done with them._


	7. Earthshake (Chatri)

Chatri was _angry_.

Sometimes he thought he'd been angry since the attack on Omashu.

First, of course, was the attack itself, and his father Aran forbidding him to join in the city's defence. (Not that Chatri had _listened_, of course.)

Second was King Bumi's surrender and his father's evacuation, dragging Chatri out with him and another group of nobles. He was the only powerful earthbender of the lot and thus expected to act as their safeguard.

After that they reached the Great Divide, where some complete _idiot_ had earthbent large breaks in the path down, forcing Chatri to rebuild them. He was almost grateful when the Canyon Crawlers came out - it gave him a way to _vent_.

So what if he caused two rockslides in the process? Nobody was hurt.

Not that that stopped Aran from lecturing him about carelessness.

Things only got worse when they finally reached the last safe haven in the world, Ba Sing Se, the Impenetrable City.

(But it wasn't really impenetrable, was it? The world had trembled when Prince Iroh broke through the Great Outer Wall.)

His father was utterly disgusted, first by the conditions in which they were expected to wait for the ferry to Ba Sing Se (But only for himself and the other nobles. It was perfectly all right for the peasants), and then by the way they were treated - like any other commoner.

Chatri spat like a commoner then, over the rail and into the water, before telling his father to stop making a scene. He'd thought Aran might have apoplexy at that.

And now here they were, in the city at last, his father still Highly Upset that they were being treated like any other (common) refugee, when some dumb kid went and bumped into the man. Fast as any firebender, his father caught hold of the kid - and completely missed the one who did the _actual_ pickpocketing.

Smirking, Chatri waited for the kid to get further away, then twisted his foot and trapped the girl waist-deep in the ground. "Dad," he said, but Aran wasn't listening. Rolling his eyes, he snapped again, "Dad!"

The tone cut through his father's diatribe, and Aran looked over at him. Still smirking, Chatri gestured behind him toward the girl he'd caught. "You got the diversion."

It was always pleasant to show up the old man, Chatri reflected, especially when his face went all red like that.

And then the earth rocked, and the girl was shot up from her prison.

The young noble whirled to yell at whoever had let her out, and blinked to see a grinning boy his own age dusting the thief off and scolding her. "Now, y'_know_ better'n t' fleece nobles," he said, plucking the purse from her hand. "We dun like that an' y'know it."

Interestingly, the thief-girl looked absolutely _petrified_ by the smiling boy. Who _was_ he?

He leaned in to say something Chatri couldn't hear, then patted her on the head, gave her a coin, and said, "G'wan wi' ye now. Shoo."

She bolted, and the green-clad boy sauntered past Chatri, shoulder just barely brushing against his robes. This time when he spoke, all trace of street cant had gone. "Sorry about that, sir," he said, taking hold of the boy Chatri's father held still. "Sometimes the children get desperate." The old man opened his mouth to protest, but suddenly the boy was out of his grip entirely and at the smiling boy's side. "They tend not to think when - _stop squirmin', kid, y'should know better_ - they're hungry."

Aran drew himself up, and Chatri rolled his eyes. _Here it goes_.

"I _demand_ those two be arrested!" he demanded haughtily.

The smiling boy stopped smiling.

"Then you're an idiot," was his blunt remark. As an afterthought, he added, "Sir." He released his charge with a disciplinary swat on the behind and turned his full attention on Aran. "If we arrested every child who engaged in petty theft when they were hungry, there'd be no room for them as commit _real_ crimes." He tossed the old man his purse. "Keep that inside your robes where nobody'll notice, and you're more like to keep it."

Chatri noted with interest that the once-smiling boy's manner of speaking had slid from respectful to lazy - an insult, and a blatant one at that. The subtlety of this was _not_ lost on his father.

"You _dare_-" he began, but the once-smiling boy interrupted him.  
"There's trains'll take you to the Upper Ring off that way. Welcome to Ba Sing Se." He clapped Aran on the shoulder and wandered off.

Fascinated, Chatri watched him go. The boy had switched from street cant to a more educated manner of speaking and then back again like he'd been trying on a shirt. Moreover, he'd spoken with authority - either he had a powerful backer, or a lot of people to call for backup.

He wasn't in a gang - that dark green robe with the mark of the Earth Kingdom on the chest was far too expensive to be a gang mark. And he didn't stand right for a policeman.

Even more fascinating was how people shied away at first, like the girl he'd grabbed, but then saw his face and relaxed.

He wanted that.

"Chatri, c'mon," his youngest brother said, taking his hand. "You'll get left."

Chatri shook himself from his musings and realised his family had gone on ahead towards the indicated trains. "All right, Kamol," he said, letting the boy tug him after them.

* * *

It was the trains that made Chatri finally appreciate the sheer _size_ of Ba Sing Se: it took four stops just to traverse the Lower Ring. At the third stop, two men in the same dark green as the smiling boy boarded the train. Unlike him, however, both of them wore hats. Neither looked native to the city, Chatri noticed: the taller man had the high cheekbones that hinted at Water Tribe ancestry; he couldn't say where the smaller man was from other than Not Omashu and Not Ba Sing Se.

It took him a moment to realise the train had gone silent.

The green-robed men didn't seem to notice or care; they simply walked to a pair of empty seats. As they passed by, he felt Kamol burrow into his side and put a comforting arm around his brother's shoulders. Once they sat down, the train began to move again, and Cheekbones draw a novel from someplace and started to read.

Slowly, conversation resumed, but in a much quieter, more subdued tone.

Well.

Chatri listened to his siblings' chatter with one ear, surreptitiously keeping an eye on the green-robed men. Who _were_ they, that their mere presence silenced so many all at once?

They crossed the Middle Ring with only one stop between either end. To Chatri's surprise, only a few people abandoned the train on seeing the green-robed men. So, people feared them, but not so much so that they would actively flee. Interesting.

Kamol remained huddled against his side, so Chatri left his arm where it was. His sisters were trying to spy shops from the train while his other brother slept; Aran stared huffily ahead as Mother tended to the baby.

Finally, the train stopped at the innermost wall, and an official in emerald green robes entered. "Show me your passes or get off," he commanded.

Passes?

Aran looked as confused as Chatri felt. He leaned over to Mother and asked, "What passes?"

Chatri watched the passengers drawing papers from books, purses, clothing, or rising to exit the train, and fought his growing ire. It was clear that they needed those passes in order to enter the Upper Ring. If they hadn't been given any, then Aran had pissed off the customs officials but good.

Aran rose from his seat to argue with the official, and Chatri put his face in his hands. Ancestors, _why?_ he wondered.

"Hsst. Kid," someone said.

Chatri looked up, and realised that the shorter green-robed man was standing next to him now. Holy-!

He hadn't heard a _sound_.

"Check your pack," the man said, and drifted past him to show the official his own pass.

Chatri reached over Kamol and grabbed his bag-

Eight papers. No names, but all granting the bearer permission to enter the Upper Ring.

How-

He suddenly remembered the smiling boy brushing past him.

"I've got them," he said, standing carefully so he wouldn't knock his brother to the floor.

Aran whirled on him, his face red with anger. "And when were you planning to tell me about these?"

Chatri yawned insolently. "It's not my fault you forgot to grab them." He sauntered past the old man to hand the official all eight papers. The man barely glanced at the papers; he was looking over Chatri's shoulder.

Despite being tempted to look, Chatri kept his gaze forward. He was probably looking at Cheekbones for confirmation, since these passes weren't like those everyone else carried. "These seem to be in order," the official said a moment later. He handed the papers back to Chatri without casting so much as a glance at Aran. "Don't ever lose these. You wouldn't want to be mistaken for the riffraff of the Lower City."

Aran drew himself up to his full height. "If you had any idea who I am-"

"You're Hóu Aran of Omashu, second cousin to King Bumi, nobody cares," Chatri interrupted. "Stop trying to pull rank in someone else's country."

He heard a smothered chuckle behind him.

"Both of you stop," his mother ordered. "You're making a scene." She settled the baby in Chatri's arms and took Aran by the shoulder. "Thank you for your patience," she added to the official after shooting her son a warning glare.

Looking entirely unimpressed by the scene, the official waved them back to their seats.

* * *

After a week in Ba Sing Se, Chatri's temper was boiling over again.

He'd escaped their comfortable Upper Ring apartment to a library, but as he poured over the histories, he realised that censorship was heavily practised here.

On the whole, Chatri didn't particularly mind censorship, especially when his rank got him the forbidden texts anyway. But in this city, not only would claiming his rank not get him anywhere, it would put him more in line with his father.

Damn it, how was he supposed to learn how the Dragon of the West had been repelled?

Annoyed at being thwarted, he stormed quietly to the section on gardening. At least roses were unlikely to be censored.

One of the green-robed men (Dai Li, Chatri reminded himself) was browsing there. He wasn't one Chatri had seen before, either - he carried himself slightly differently than the others had. His skin was as dark as Chatri's, leading the boy to idly wonder how much Water lay in his blood.

Then the Dai Li looked right at him.

Fearlessly, Chatri met his gaze.

The Dai Li smiled. "It's Chatri, isn't it?" he asked.

"Could be," the boy replied. "And you are?"

"Qin," said the Dai Li. He was rolling a bit of quartz between his fingers the way other men might smooth their hair - not a nervous tic, but an absent gesture. Was he a crystalbender?

If the Dai Li took benders as weak as the crystalbenders, they might well be interested in quakers like Chatri.

Qin noticed where Chatri's eyes had strayed, and slid the crystal into his wristband. "Habit," he said.

Chatri shrugged one shoulder in response. Wasn't his business. "Did you need something?"

Qin smiled. "I'm told you're interested in the Dai Li."

Chatri's eyes narrowed. "How do you know that?"

"We do talk to each other," Qin said gently. "And your father is... memorable."

It was all Chatri could do to keep from sneering at the mention of Aran. Allowing his contempt for the old man to show wasn't worth alienating the Dai Li. "Yes," he finally said. "He is."

"Lanh says he was impressed that you noticed the actual pickpocket." Seeing Chatri's blank expression, Qin added, "No hat."

"So it _does_ mean something," Chatri murmured.

Qin heard him. "It's the mark of a full agent," he explained. "Our trainees don't wear them."

Chatri tried not to look too interested at that remark. "Do you take on many?"

"Trainees? When we can," Qin said. "Not many want to join us these days. We only have Lanh and Alak at the moment."

That certainly improved the odds.

"Are you interested in joining?"

Chatri **grinned**.

* * *

_**Author's Note: **__This most likely takes place concurrently with the Gaang's stay in the North Pole. It'd be easier to pin down if we knew exactly when Omashu fell._

_Chatri and his family belong to me, as do Lanh and the two Dai Li on the train. Qin belongs to Rebecca Hb. (I KNOW YOU ARE SHOCKED) and is used with her permission and input._

_For those who were wondering what a Hóu is, I believe it is an equivalent rank to that of a duke._


	8. Pipa Lessons (Mi-Cha, Xiang)

Mi-Cha covered a yawn with one hand. Bored as she was, it would be rude to let it show. After all, it wasn't poor Joo Dee's fault that she'd advanced beyond the skills required of a cultured young lady. Daddy assured her that he was looking for a new music tutor, but for the time being she needed to continue her lessons with the older woman.

It was hard to say who was more relieved when the door opened: Mi-Cha or Joo Dee.

"Captain Xiang!" Joo Dee fluttered. "Did you need something?"

Mi-Cha turned to bow respectfully to the older man.

"Your student," he replied. "Mi-Cha, come with me. Bring your instrument."

Confused, Mi-Cha obeyed, bowing to the flustered Joo Dee before following Xiang out. Had Daddy found her a new tutor?

After several minutes of walking, they arrived at an empty room. Xiang put her in a chair, then seated himself across from her. "Play something," he ordered.

_Now_ she remembered: Xiang played the pipa as well.

She hesitated a moment, saw his forming scowl, and quickly struck the opening chords on the hardest piece she knew. Halfway through, however, he stopped her. "Where's your music?" he demanded.

"I stopped using it last year," she admitted. "I've memorised the whole thing."

"Lazy," he scolded her. "You should have worked on mastering it before you put it aside. Go get it."

Confused, flushed with embarrassment, she obeyed.

It was a ten minute trot to even reach the too-large home she shared with her father. Fortunately, Mi-Cha's obsession with cleanliness extended to her bedroom, so she was quickly able to find the discarded book Joo Dee had taught her from and return to Xiang.

When she got back, she heard music. Curious, she peered inside to see the captain playing her pipa. His eyes were closed, and he looked more peaceful than she had ever seen him. Was this what Yuriko saw in him?

...No, Yuriko certainly seemed to enjoy their shouting matches.

Mi-Cha hesitated, not wanting to interrupt, but Xiang opened his eyes and turned to her, letting the last notes die. "Show me the piece you were just playing," he ordered.

She'd anticipated that, and had already marked that place. He nodded when she opened right to it. "See here?" he said. "You completely ignored all of the dynamics to focus on the notes. There's more to playing than just plucking the strings."

Mi-Cha flushed again. "I know that, Captain," she said quietly.

Brown eyes met hers. "Then why aren't you using that knowledge?"

She thought of several reasons, but all of them were excuses. No Dai Li accepted excuses, particularly not from her.

"I felt it didn't matter," she admitted softly.

"It does," he told her. "Play for me again - and this time watch the dynamics. You're old enough to know better."

She spent an exacting hour with Xiang, who was much harder to satisfy than Joo Dee. To her disgust, by the end of the hour she was sweating. Ew, and she still had calligraphy with Liu before she had time to spare. Ewwww. Maybe he'd let her switch her spare hour with his lesson so she could bathe. Ew.

"How often do you spend time with Joo Dee for music?" Xiang asked her.

"An hour every week, Captain," she replied.

He snorted. "If you want to do better, you'll come to me more often. Be here tomorrow, in this room, at the end of the working day."

"Yes, Captain," she said, bemused.

"Get to your next lesson."

She bowed and left. She'd have to run to get to Liu so she wouldn't belate, but... ew. Sweat. Responsibility and duty were unpleasant, she decided.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:**__ This takes place around three years or so after Ozai's defeat, making Mi-Cha eleven years old instead of eight._

_Mi-Cha belongs to me; Captain Xiang belongs to (surprise!) Rebecca Hb. and is used with her permission and input. Yes, I am going to keep saying this every chapter her characters appear in. Also, go read her stuff; it is awesome._

_I partly wrote this to show Mi-Cha being in the wrong - she's so often written as the Dai Li's little girl, the sober, mature child who acts like a small adult. I wanted to show that she can and does screw up, and they are perfectly willing to call her on it when she's wrong. That's how you raise a child as opposed to a small sociopath._

_Many thanks to Caelum Blue for acting as beta for this chapter!_


	9. Manhunt (Kidlat)

"Hua Jia is dead," said Ba Zi.

Shi Quan's eyes narrowed as his crew gasped. They didn't get along with Ba Zi's crew, but Hua Jia had still been a tagger, just like the rest of them.

Hers was the seventh murder to hit the community of immigrants and refugees in the Lower Ring, and still the City Guard had yet to bestir themselves from their stations.

His hands clenched into fists. The murderer, Sha Shou, did worse than target the despised of Ba Sing Se; he targeted their _women_, secure in the knowledge that no one in authority would bestir themselves for such lowly persons.

"We have to stop him," he said.

Both crews stared at him.

"What?" Dui Zhang asked.

"If we don't, who will?" Shi Quan shot back. "How long before we lose someone else? Before we lose a sister, a mother, another crewmate? We already know the City Guard aren't gonna help."

"I'm with him," said Ying Zi harshly, her voice thick with tears. "Any of us could be next."

"What the hell can we do?" Beryl wanted to know. "In case you hadn't noticed, we're the scum of the city."

Shi Quan smacked his crewmate upside the head. "We can do a lot, idiot. More than the bottom-feeders who don't do their fucking emjobs/em. Now, to start with, we're gonna need people to keep an eye out for him. Earthbenders, to get a signal out to the rest of us..."

* * *

Shi Quan's plan was almost perfect. It could even have worked, had he remembered to account for the consequences of Sha Shou finding another victim.

Ying Zi, who was supposed to have been on watch, struggled with the taller man, only barely managing to keep him from strangling her as he had Hua Jia and his other five victims. But he was stronger than she, and they both knew it. She used one hand to pull at the cord wrapped around her neck, while the other flailed desperately for -

Shi Quan lunged forward, tearing down a part of the alley wall and shattering it into the gravel she needed.

Startled by the noise, the murderer loosed his grip on the cord, then let go entirely when three metres' worth of gravelised wall slammed into him on either side.

Choking, Ying Zi fell to her knees. Shi Quan frantically hauled her away from her former captor, terrified he'd try again.

"Getting away-" she gasped. He looked over his shoulder to see the bastard scrambling away. When he hesitated, Ying Zi slapped him. "Go get him!"

He built a protective wall around her, ignoring her curses, then took off in pursuit.

He realised quickly that Sha Shou would outrun him - even without his head start, his legs were longer than Shi Quan's, and he ran faster on top of that.

Unfortunately for the murderer, the streets were all rock.

Shi Quan leapt, and rock encased his feet like boots. He landed, pushing off against the stone as though it was ice. With the rock boots acting like ice skates, he more than doubled his speed. Swiftly, he caught up to Sha Shou, who turned at the scrape of rock on rock. His eyes flew wide as he saw the incensed teen bearing down on him.

A sharp gesture, and a low wall erupted too close to Shi Quan for him to avoid. Momentum carried him forward even as his feet flew out behind him, but he was able to handle that. He turned the fall into a somersault, rolling forward and keeping his speed as he launched himself at Sha Shou.

Too late, he saw the knife.

He twisted his body but couldn't completely dodge the blade. Pain scored his arm, which he ignored in favour of punching Sha Shou in the throat. The bastard choked, dropping the knife, and Shi Quan snapped a side kick into his stomach, then clipped him on the head with a stone-shod foot for good measure.

Dazed, Sha Shou dropped.

Breathing heavily, Shi Quan picked up the knife and looked at the murderer at his feet. He knew with depressing certainty that the worst Sha Shou would get was a few years in prison, or maybe a fine. Nobody cared about his victims, who were all women foreign to Ba Sing Se, and from the Lower Ring besides; he would be punished only for disturbing the peace.

"I won't let you hurt anyone else," he whispered, and raised the knife.

A hand grabbed his wrist. "Don't sink to his level," a deep voice murmured.

Shi Quan tried to pull free, but the newcomer's grip was like iron. "Drop the knife, son," he advised now.

Reluctantly, Shi Quan obeyed. He turned to see who had grabbed him and felt the blood drain from his face.

_Dai Li_.

The corner of the Dai Li's mouth twitched. "Calm down," he advised. "You didn't kill him. But you _did_ capture him."

"Fat lot of good that'll do," he said bitterly. "Nobody cares about the women he killed."

"I do."

Startled, he met the Dai Li's grey eyes. And saw the shape of his face, and realised.

"You're not from Ba Sing Se."

"No," the Dai Li said softly. "And I have family out here. Commander'll probably yell at me for coming out here, but he can get fucked."

Shi Quan blinked. Dai Li swore?

He raised Shi Quan to his feet, then stomped. Sha Shou sank into the earth until only his head emerged. "I saw how you chased him," the Dai Li said conversationally. "I've never seen bending like that before."

"It's just rock-skating," Shi Quan muttered.

"I'm still interested," he said with a quick smile. "We can check on your friend while you tell me about it. What's your name, son?"

He hesitated. There was no way in hell he was telling a Dai Li his tagger alias.

"Kidlat."

* * *

_**Author's Notes**__: This ficlet takes place about eight years before Aang arrives in Ba Sing Se._

_Though I mostly call him Shi Quan in this, his real name is Kidlat and that is the name he will go by in any subsequent stories, unless he's out tagging. His character was somewhat inspired by Banksy, though that is not actually made clear in this story since it's about his recruitment._

_And yes, the Dai Li who caught him is indeed a young(er) Agent Hyo. :D_

_All the OCs contained herein belong to me._

_(OMG nobody from Rebecca Hb? I DIE OF SHOCK)_


	10. Mixed Signals (Haru, Katara)

"How can you be so calm!?" Katara demanded irritably.

Haru opened his eyes and regarded her for a moment. Disliking his hidden emotions, Katara turned away. Whatever being in the Dai Li did to people, she despised it. She didn't even _know_ him anymore!

"Anger won't get us anywhere, Katara," he said evenly. She hated the way he said her name. "If we're going to get out of this, we're going to have to work together."

"I am _not_ working-" she blurted, and clapped her hands over her mouth before the rest of the sentence could get out.

"With a Dai Li?" he finished. She flushed, and he shook his head. A fleeting expression passed through his eyes, there and gone before she could identify it. "Well, it's your choice," he said. "But you need me to get out of here. And I need you." He smiled mirthlessly. "As upsetting as that is."

"I am _not_ upset!"

He raised an eyebrow, and Katara wanted to hit him. Instead she turned her back on him. If he tried anything while her back was turned, she'd feel him move-

Haru isn't like that, a part of her whispered. He would never hurt you.

Haru _changed_, she argued back. He's not Haru anymore, he's _Dai Li_. You can't trust them.

She felt him get up and whirled, eyes blazing, but he simply remained where he was, his hands tucked inside the sleeves of his robe. She hated that stance, she hated that robe, she hated that stupid _hat_, she hated how tall he'd grown and how she had to crane her neck to look him in the eyes now.

Most of all, she hated how soft his green eyes were when he looked at her.

"Katara," he said, taking a step toward her.

Katara snapped one hand up, stepping back to keep the distance between them, and felt metal at her back. "_Don't_," she snapped, and he stopped.

She could have stopped him if he hadn't, even if her bending water hadn't been taken away like Haru's stone gloves and boots. But he had still stopped.

"Stay away from me," she hissed, and he retreated to the other side of their cell, briefly looking... almost hurt.

Something in her tore at that fleeting expression, but it was soon replaced with even more anger. How _dare_ he make her feel sorry for him? He was _Dai Li_, he wasn't _her_ Haru anymore.

He wasn't her Haru.

"How could you do this?" she snapped. "How could you _join_ them?"

"The Dai Li are different now," he said quietly.

"Don't lie to me!" Katara's eyes blazed.

"I'm not. The Dai Li _had_ to change, or be destroyed," Haru said. "Long Feng-"

"Long Feng was a dictator! He _bent people's minds_! How can you possibly defend him!?" she demanded.

"He inspired me," Haru replied simply.

Something in Katara snapped, and she stormed over to him. "Inspired? _Inspired_!?" She shoved him as hard as she could; he didn't move an inch. "He's a murderer, Haru! He killed-"

"He killed Jet," Haru said calmly. "A terrorist who, incidentally, had directly caused far more deaths than Long Feng."

"You can't-"

"I can't what, Katara?" he asked, catching her hands as she tried to shove him a second time. "Know that? I've seen the files. Defend Long Feng? I'm not. But Long Feng _is_ a part of Ba Sing Se, and he _is_ back in power, and he _is_ changing the Dai Li. They're not who they used to be."

She tried to pull free, and was frightened when she couldn't. "Let go!"

He did, and she scrambled back, furious. "I _hate_ you!" she yelled.

The emotionless mask on his face shattered, and for all too brief a moment he looked like the boy she had met a decade before. But back then, the pain in his eyes had been because of the Fire Nation taking his father away.

Then his eyes, always so gentle when he looked at her, hardened as he reassembled his calm mask. "I know," he told her, and sat down again with his back to her.

She opened her mouth to apologise, then closed it. She was _not_ apologising to a Dai Li.

Not even if it was Haru.

The silence was uncomfortable, but Katara wasn't going to break it. She wondered if Haru even noticed - his breathing and heartrate were consistent with meditation.

Long moments passed, until Katara realised that Haru was _right_, damn him. Her anger wasn't helping anything right now. They would have to work together if they were going to get out of this, loathe as she was to admit it.

What other choice was there? Wait to be rescued? No, thank you.

Frustrated because the Dai Li was _right_, Katara sat down to try and meditate, shoving all thoughts of the man behind her away.

It was hard, since she couldn't not be completely aware of Haru, aware of how the blood in his body coursed through him, giving her a perfect outline of his adult form.

She flushed slightly. Stupid bloodbending.

Forcing her thoughts away from Haru again, she turned her attention inward, to calming the turbulent waters of her spirit.

She could figure out why she felt like he'd betrayed her later.

"Someone's coming," she said some time later.

Haru rose with a slight grunt. "Good," he said. "Be ready."

She cast a confused glance at him as he went to stand in front of the door.

Food was slid through a slot at the bottom of the door, and then Haru struck lightning fist, the palms of both hands slamming into the door - and slamming it completely free of the frame.

Katara's eyes flew wide.

_Metalbending._

Haru stepped outside, and she followed quickly. He knelt and heaved the door clear, dispassionately observing the man he'd struck with it. "Katara?" he asked.

"Alive," she said after a moment - yes, the heartbeat was going strong, but what if Haru chose to kill him?

Instead, he carefully leaned the door against the wall, and then tore a strip off of it with a series of carefully planned strikes. "It'll do," he said critically, eyeing the makeshift _bo_. He turned to her. "Anything you can use?"

"Only this," said Katara, her smile wicked as she bent spilled milk off the floor.

His smile matched hers and made her regret the hardness of his emerald eyes.

Impulsively, to try and make that hardness go away, she looped the milk behind his shoulders and yanked him to her, gratified that her bending moved him where her own strength would not.

He overbalanced and only caught himself from falling on top of her by bracing himself on the wall behind her. She smiled to see the surprise on his face as she grabbed the front of his robe - _(that stupid robe)_ - and yanked him closer to her for a kiss.

She only intended it to be quick, but then his arms folded around her and he pulled her flush against him, deepening the kiss.

She flattened her hands against his chest, to push him away, only it turned from that into a caress. So she took the kiss deeper - and was surprised when _he_ pulled back.

"Haru-" she began, but he shook his head.

"We have to get out of here," he reminded her.

She almost, almost yelled at him - he wanted her to kiss him, wanted more than that, she could _tell_ - but she bit her tongue. His eyes were gentle again.

"Then let's go," she said, bending the milk into a sphere. When they were free, she could sort out how complicated Haru made her feel.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:**__ This takes place about ten years after Aang escapes the iceberg._

_Obviously, neither Haru nor Katara belong to me._

_Just as obviously, yes, Haru is Dai Li now._

_Why is Haru Dai Li?_

_Well... I guess you'll have to wait to find out. :D_


	11. Avatar (Hyo, Aang)

The Avatar strode into Hyo's office and stopped dead. Hyo pretended not to notice him, keeping his eyes on the report Alak had brought him three hours ago.

"You're not Long Feng," the boy said, his voice cracking on the third word.

"Indeed," Hyo replied, looking up. The Avatar had grown in the last two years, he noted, and appeared more serene. Hyo, struggling to keep the Lower Ring fed and riot-free for the second year in a row, did not trust that serenity. "I am Inspector-General Hyo, in charge of the Dai Li."

The Avatar wasn't able to conceal his surprise. "I thought Long Feng was-"

"That was what he intended for you to believe," Hyo said softly.

The boy started to reply, but a knock on the door interrupted him. "Enter," Hyo called.

The door sank into the ground, revealing Agent Alak with a tea tray in his hands. His hat had slipped down to his back again, Hyo noted absently. He was far more interested in the expression on the Avatar's face. When had he met any of the Dai Li trainees?

"Thank you, Alak," he said, creating an earthen table for Alak to set the tray on. "Do you have those projections from Minister Hua Wan for me?"

Despite being asked to deliver the oral portion of the report again, Alak didn't let any confusion or hesitation cross his face. "Between the damage wrought during the Retaking and the acres lost to the Ba Sing Se Zoo, the Minister believes we'll need to import a number of crops from Omashu in order to last the winter. Again."

Three hours ago, Hyo had taken the news without blinking an eye. The number was less than it had been the previous year, after all. Now, however, he muttered a curse. "Have one of the pages deliver a message to the minister for me. A request for a meeting, five hours after sunup. He can choose the location."

Alak bowed. "Yes, Inspector-General."

"Fix your hat," Hyo told him. "Dismissed." He then turned his attention to the Avatar, who looked stunned.

Good.

"Did you need something, Lord Avatar?" he asked in his mildest tone.

The boy jumped. "I- uh- the-" He took a deep breath and slowly released it, then tried again. "You need to let the Joo Dees go."

...ah.

Fortunately, Long Feng's declaration of the Dai Li's new purpose had restructured things somewhat. "The Joo Dees no longer fall under the office of the Dai Li," Hyo informed him. "They now serve the Ministry of Culture entirely."

"It's _wrong_," the Avatar insisted furiously, "and if you don't let them go-"

Hyo stood so suddenly he startled the boy into a combative stance. "You'll _what_, Avatar?" he demanded. "The Joo Dees were moved precisely so **I** could not undo what was done to them! The Minister knows very well my feelings about what went on under Lake Laogai."

The Avatar stared at him, grey eyes wide with disbelief. "What do you mean?"

"I should think my meaning very clear," Hyo snapped.

"But you're _Dai Li_."

"It does not follow that all Dai Li know about it."

"But-"

"If that is all, Avatar," Hyo interrupted, trying not to see the boy's hangdog expression, "then the door is behind you. I have work to do."

"The Joo Dees need to be let _go_," the Avatar insisted.

Hyo appreciated the sentiment, and even agreed, but he had nothing to do with the mindbenders. Long Feng allowed him his principles and simply gave all orders for that to Captain Liu.

"Then you must speak to the Cultural Minister."

"But I just came _back_ from the Fire Nation!"

Hyo quirked an eyebrow at him. "Then it seems as though you need to return. As you perceived earlier, he is not here."

"I thought he'd be back by now," the Avatar muttered sulkily.

Hyo thanked his ancestors that Mi-Cha was a biddable girl. Dealing with the Avatar, only four years her elder, was trying his patience. "Not everyone has access to a flying bison, or to airships. Furthermore, Long Feng chose to travel by sea as his business will keep him in the Fire Nation for some time to come."

Now the Avatar looked suspicious. "What's he doing there, anyway?"

Hyo saw no harm in telling the truth. "Four of my Dai Li did not return from the Fire Nation. He has gone to fetch them home."

"What if they don't want to?" Aang demanded. "What if they're hiding from _him_?"

Hyo fought the urge to rub his temples. "You don't like the Dai Li, Avatar," he pointed out. "You have made no attempt to understand anything about us."

"What does that have to do with-"

"My men swore an oath to Ba Sing Se," Hyo interrupted him. "And they have not been released from that oath. If that will be all...?"

Aang looked like he had more to say, but something in Hyo's level grey gaze made him change his mind. "That will be all. Commander."

"Good," Hyo said. "You're keeping me from my daughter. Get out of my office."

His gamble was rewarded by the startled look in the Avatar's eyes, the question that formed in his face and nearly left his mouth. But rather than ask, the Avatar left.

Hyo slumped in his seat.

"I really _am_ getting too old for this," he muttered.

First things first: he was going to see Mi-Cha, and hug her, and take her out for dinner as an apology for his most recent absence.

Tomorrow he would ask Alak just when he had met the Avatar.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:**__ This takes place immediately following "Of Course," thus placing it at nearly two years since the series finale. This also makes it concurrent with Rebecca Hb.'s unfinished fic that will explain more of what's going on in this chapter._

_Hyo is a kind man. He is not a __**good**__ man, and I do like to show his tricksier side from time to time. He is, after all, Long Feng's second-in-command, by default making him one of the most powerful men in Ba Sing Se. He also belongs to me, as does Alak. Aang belongs to Bryke and I'm putting him back now that I'm done with him._


End file.
